1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data processing method, a data processing apparatus, and a portable electronic terminal, these method, apparatus and terminal are, for instance, utilized in a goods delivery method, a sales data processing system, and portable electronic terminal that are employed in stores, such as convenience stores, consigned for an order receiving operation of goods delivery service by a goods delivery service company.
2. Discussion of the Background
Chain stores that practice sales business, expanding stores in various places, make good use of the POS (Point of Sales) system and thereby collectively grasp the sales situations of each of the stores to make up the total sales strategies.
Here, the POS system as mentioned above includes, for example, multiple POS terminals that execute processing of various data, one store computer established in each of the multiple stores that executes processing of the various data received from the multiple POS terminals, and a host computer established in headquarters that executes processing of various data by receiving the various data from the store computers established in each of the multiple stores.
Now, the POS terminal of each store registers product sales data, etc., stores them sequentially, and sends the transaction data generated from the stored various data to the store computer of the same store after completing the registration processing. Then, the store computer of each store totalizes the transaction data received from the POS terminals of the same store, and sends the totalized transaction data to the host computer of the headquarters, at a predetermined regulated timing, for example, once a day.
By utilizing the POS system as such, each store is able to confirm the sales situation, and the headquarters is able to confirm collectively the sales situations of the multiple stores.
Incidentally, in this type of POS system, recently reception of order for goods delivery service utilizing the POS terminal at each store is practiced, by making a contract with a goods delivery service company. In other word, in this type of POS system, the POS terminal at each store registers the reception data of the goods delivery service in accordance with a request by a customer, and sends the reception data as the transaction data with the product sales data to the store computer. Then the host computer that received the transaction data from the store computer sends the transaction data of the goods delivery service to the goods delivery service company by a predetermined communication line. Then, the goods delivery service company can send a home delivery truck to the stores provided with the POS terminals that received goods delivery service orders, and the truck can receive the shipment stored at the store counters and deliver them to the customers.
However, in the existing system, customers have to fill up a slip of the goods delivery service company with their phone numbers, addresses, etc. by hand. An operator of the POS terminal has to execute the receiving operation by manually inputting the necessary matters based on this slip of the goods delivery service company to the POS terminal, searching for an area code based on the address or the phone number, calculating a delivery charge based on this area code, etc.
However, such goods delivery service receiving operation is a comparably time consuming work for convenience stores, and can easily become an obstacle to other operations (especially, sales settlement operation, etc.). In addition, since it is a comparably time consuming work, it can easily induce operational mistakes by the operator.